BASEBALL DAILY REPORT : Eichhorn Injury Leaves Hole in Middle

The loss of reliever Mark Eichhorn to the 15-day disabled list Friday because of an inflamed right rotator cuff would not appear to be monumental. The submarine-style right-hander is a 35-year-old journeyman who has changed teams five times in eight years and hardly strikes fear in opponents like bullpen teammates Mike James and Troy Percival.

But Manager Marcel Lachemann is not fooled by appearances. He knows losing Eichhorn is another blow to an ailing pitching staff.

Eichhorn, whose job is to bridge the gap between Angel starters and short relievers, has been the team’s only consistently effective middle reliever, maintaining a 3.46 earned-run average in 17 games until he was hit hard in his last two appearances, after which his ERA jumped to 5.13.

But Eichhorn’s ERA would easily earn Fireman-of-the-Year honors among the Angels’ battered middle-relief corps.

The other nine who have pitched in middle relief--Mark Holzemer, Shawn Boskie, Chuck McElroy, Brad Pennington, Shad Williams, Todd Frohwirth, Dennis Springer, Jeff Schmidt and Ken Edenfield--have combined for an 8.00 ERA, giving up 64 earned runs in 72 innings.

When Eichhorn was on the DL from May 16-30, six middle relievers gave up 24 earned runs in 18 1/3 innings for an 11.78 ERA. Poor middle relief is the primary reason the Angels have been outscored, 60-24, in the fifth inning this season, and for relatively close games turning into blowout losses.

“You look at the majority of big-inning, high-scoring games and they involved middle relievers,” Lachemann said. “We have a lot of young guys there who are in totally different roles, who haven’t been successful at the big league level, and that can be a tough situation.”

The newest to step into the role is Ryan Hancock, a 24-year-old right-hander who was 2-4 with a 3.98 ERA in 10 starts at triple-A Vancouver before being activated Friday. Though he has been a starter in the minor leagues, Hancock was a closer at Brigham Young, where he also started at quarterback in 1992.

“That was a long time ago,” Lachemann said of Hancock’s relief experience. “But he has a toughness about him, an air of confidence that he can do things, and I think that comes from being a big-time quarterback.”

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Third baseman Jack Howell sat out his fourth consecutive game because of a strained left hamstring, and designated hitter Chili Davis sat out for the fourth time in five games because of a strained left hamstring. Catcher Jorge Fabregas missed his second game in a row because of a bruised bone in his left hand. . . . Lachemann said there’s a possibility Jim Edmonds, on the DL because of a strained abdomen and groin, could rejoin the team Monday in Kansas City. . . . Steve Ontiveros will make his third rehabilitation start Monday for Class-A Lake Elsinore. . . . The Indians surpassed the one-million mark in attendance Friday night.